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Charis Books & More — Cold Outreach

Target: Charis Books & More (184 S. Candler St., Decatur, GA 30030)

Tier: C — community / long-game

Channel: WEB — email + Instagram DM (@charisbooksandmore)

Ref: D8 in targets.md (Web-sourced candidates 2026-05-26 batch)

Contact: Owners Sara Luce Look and Angela Gabriel; Charis Circle general contact info@chariscircle.org. Decision-maker UNVERIFIED — store site (charisbooksandmore.com) 403s bots, so confirm the current owner or Charis Circle ED before finalizing.

Built: 2026-09-12

Context

Charis Books & More is the oldest independent feminist bookstore in the Southern U.S. — founded November 4, 1974 in Little Five Points, moved to Decatur in 2019 when it partnered with Agnes Scott College to become the college's bookstore. Fifty years of the same mission: feminist literature, diverse children's books, LGBTQ fiction and nonfiction. The 501(c)3 arm Charis Circle, founded 1996, runs the programming — writing groups, poetry open mics, children's story hours, anti-racist discussion groups, trans youth support groups, zine workshops — 270+ events a year, and bills Charis as metro Atlanta's only publicly accessible dedicated feminist space, open seven days a week.

The video angle: an institution with fifty years of community history whose events almost all get documented on someone's phone and disappear. A reading, an open mic, a story hour — these are the moments a real reel can preserve for a space whose entire reason to exist is being in the room. The gap isn't awareness, it's a visual record worthy of the history.

The offer: A free 60–90 second reel from a Charis Circle event of their choosing. No strings, they own the footage. Because this is a nonprofit community institution, the register is a gift, not a vendor pitch — no sales angle.

What I don't have: A verified decision-maker. The store site 403s bots, so I'm working from older coverage. Owners Sara Luce Look and Angela Gabriel are the public names; Charis Circle general contact info@chariscircle.org is the safest reachable channel. Confirm who's actually reading it before sending.

Email

Subject: 50 years of a feminist space

[Name] —

Fifty years as the oldest feminist bookstore in the South, and a move from Little Five Points to Decatur that made Charis Agnes Scott's bookstore. That's real history, and most of it still only lives on a phone camera.

I make short documentary reels for mission-driven organizations in Atlanta — Ghost Coast Video. Charis Circle runs 270 events a year, and almost none of them leave a real visual record behind. I'd like to offer a free 60–90 second piece from an event of your choosing. No strings, you own it.

If there's something on the calendar, reply here.

— Brandyn

ghostcoast.video

Instagram DM

@charisbooksandmore — 50 years as the South's oldest feminist bookstore, and most of those readings still only live on a phone camera. I make short reels for mission orgs in Atlanta. Free 60–90 sec piece from a Charis Circle event, you own it. Worth a reply?

Before sending

1. Verify the decision-maker. The store site 403s bots, so I couldn't confirm who's reading. Owners Sara Luce Look and Angela Gabriel are the public names; Charis Circle general contact is info@chariscircle.org. Do not guess a name in the greeting — if a person can't be confirmed, either address it to the owners by name once verified or leave the greeting generic for the Charis Circle inbox.

2. Verify the channel. info@chariscircle.org routes to Charis Circle (the 501(c)3 programming arm), not the store itself. Confirm it's live and reaches a human before sending; the store's own contact is not web-verifiable (site 403s).

3. Word count: ~113 words in the email body. Good.

4. DM char count: ~270 chars. Good.

5. Tone check. This is a mission-aligned gift offer, not a vendor pitch. The "50 years" and "270 events" references are real and verified this session (1974 founding, 2019 Decatur/Agnes Scott move, 270+ events via Charis Circle). No fabricated metrics, no AI attribution, no reused copy from Refuge / Eddie's / Wild Heaven / Alternate Roots.

Status log